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Order of the Month
| Common Name | Metamorphosis | Mouthparts |
| Biology | An Overview | Highlighted Species |
| Recognizing Spider Groups | Webs | Relatives |
| Information Sources | Web Links | Fun Facts |
Common
name: spiders
Metamorphosis: The stages are eggs,
young (often called spiderlings) and adults.
Mouthparts: Mouthparts are a pair of
chelicerae, each with a piercing tooth. Chelicerae are used to manipulate
captured prey but all food intake is liquid.
Key Characteristics: Spiders are wingless and lack antennae. Most have six
or eight eyes and bodies variable in size and shape. Young and adults have
eight legs and a pair of palpi by the mouth. Size ranges from 1/8 inch to
more than four inches.
Biology: Palpi are used much like antennae
in insects and in males are used during mating. Most spin webs of various
sorts to capture prey or as a refuge. All spiders are beneficial
predators. A few such as the widow spiders and recluse spiders are
poisonous and should be avoided. There are about 900 species of spiders in
Texas and only a few are mentioned here.
Name derivation: Araneae
Information Sources
Books
Levi, H. W., L. R. Levi, and H. S. Zim. 1990. Spiders and their kin.
Golden Press, New York, 160 pp.
Gertsch, W. J. 1979. American spiders. Second Edition. Van Nostrand,
Princeton, 274 pp.
J. A. Jackman. 1997. A Field Guide to the Spiders and Scorpions of Texas.
Originally by Gulf Publishing, Houston, TX. To order call the National
Book Network at: 800-462-6420.
Web Links
Arachnology
Spiders, Scorpions and their Relatives
Jumping Spiders
Orb Weavers
Other Spiders
Spiders on the web
Recluse Links